Spain's fixed broadband growth mainly triggered by fibre optic uptake

Propelled by the increasing demand for high speed Internet, specifically fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) – Spain recorded almost 12m fixed broadband subscribers in 3Q13, a 6% YoY increase. Following the increase in subscribers, penetration per household likewise jumped from 65% in 3Q12 to 69% in 3Q13.

The fibre optic market exhibited a large rise, recording 0.5m subscriptions in 3Q13 as compared to only 0.2m subscriptions in 3Q12, a 88% YoY rise as a result of fierce competition. Both the incumbent and the alternative operators are actively engaging in network-sharing deals, infrastructure upgrades, and heavy marketing of multi-play offers.

xDSL retained its supremacy with almost 9.5m subscriptions albeit experiencing slowdown in growth, while cable broadband subscriptions slightly contracted by 1% YoY, ending the quarter with around 2m subscribers. These changes are mainly due to customer churn to fibre optic broadband, which is usually priced slightly lower than cable broadband especially in quadruple play offers (Internet + fixed line + TV + mobile). Continuous growth in the fibre optic market at the expense of xDSL and cable broadband is expected to continue.